Grilled cheese mania

Grilled cheese mania

Grilled cheese mania sweeping the nation

From the highly competitive Grilled Cheese Invitational in Los Angeles, to restaurants dedicated to the sandwich, grilled cheese mania is sweeping the nation. Bill Geist sinks his teeth into a growing obsession among American foodies.

(CBS News) Chef Eric Greenspan, who attended Le Cordon Bleu culinary school in Paris and graduated from UC Berkeley's Haas School of Business, trained in New York with such celebrated chefs as Alain Ducasse, David Bouley and Rocco DeSpirito, and apprenticed at three-star Michelin chef Ferran Adria's El Bulli in Rosas, Spain. He has also appeared on the Food Network's "The Next Iron Chef" and "Iron Chef America." His restaurants include The Foundry on Melrose in Los Angeles, The Roof on Wilshire (atop the Hotel Wilshire), and Greenspan's Grilled Cheese (opening later this year).

Below are two recipes from Greenspan for grilled cheese sandwiches, including "The Champ," for which he won the 2008 Grilled Cheese Invitational. Also: Web-extra video of Greenspan demonstrating how to make a grilled cheese sandwich.Special CBSNews.com section: Food and wineThe Champ: Grilled Taleggio Sandwich With Apricots and Capers Makes 4 sandwiches The Champ, a Grilled Taleggio Sandwich With Apricots and Capers from chef Eric Greenspan. / Entropy CollectiveIngredients: 15 dried apricots 1 tablespoon nonpareil capers 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil 8 slices dark raisin bread 5 tablespoons butter, at room temperature 4 small handfuls arugula 8 ounces taleggio cheese, rind removed, at room temperature 4 pinches fleur de sel 1. Place apricots in small saucepan and add water just to cover. Bring to full boil and immediately remove from heat. Mix in capers, mustard and olive oil. Pulse in blender to chunky consistency; set aside. 2. Spread one side of each bread slice evenly (to the edges) with 1/2 tablespoon butter. With buttered sides down, top four slices with 2 tablespoons of apricot mixture, handful of arugula and equal portions of cheese. Top with remaining slices, buttered side up. 3. Place large skillet over high heat, and melt remaining 1 tablespoon butter. Reduce heat to low and add sandwiches. Cook until browned and crisp on both sides, about 2 minutes a side. Transfer to a platter lined with paper towels, and sprinkle each with a pinch of fleur de sel. Cut in half and serve.

Johnny Apple Cheese, a.k.a. Johnny Pastrami Makes 4 sandwichesIngredients: 1/2 pound butter 1/2 cup mustard seeds 5 Granny Smith apples, cored and sliced thin 1 medium onion, sliced thin 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard 2 tablespoons honey 1/2 cup apple cider 1/2 cup cider vinegar 8 slices of extra sour sourdough bread 16 slices aged white Cheddar 1 pound pastrami, sliced thin 1. For the apple mustard chutney: In a pan over medium heat, heat two tablespoons of butter until it foams. Add the mustard seeds and toast in the pan for 1 minute, and then add most of the apples (reserve 8 slices) and onions and cook until tender. Add honey, cider, vinegar and Dijon mustard, and reduce until the liquid is absorbed. Take off heat and puree in a blender until mostly smooth. 2. In a large pan (cast iron is best) or griddle, melt half of the remaining butter and 4 slices of bread. Top each slice of bread with 2 slices of cheddar cheese and toast until golden brown. When the cheese is melted, add 1/4 of the pastrami to each slice, a dollop of chutney, and two thin slices of raw green apple. Cover with remaining bread. Add remaining butter, flip sandwich and grill until other side is equally golden brown. Cut each sandwich in half and serve hot, preferably with a frilly toothpick.

WEB EXTRA VIDEO: How to make a grilled cheese sandwich Chef Eric Greenspan demonstrates for Bill Geist how to make one of his specialty grilled cheese sandwiches. Lots of butter went into the making of this video.Recipes from chef Eric Greenspan

Saw this on tv this weekend and I seem to recall that this trend was all predicted here a few yrs ago!!!!Personally-i LOVE the whole "Grilled cheese "concept and loved the 4 category treatment that these folks used in their judging--very creative and--no doubt the first on many more to come! WISH I HAD BEEN THERE FOR THE EVENT!!!!!!

My preferred grilled cheese is wedges of brie or camembert on baguette, run under the broiler until cheese is melted and baguette not covered with cheese is toasted and crispy. Put onto a plate, take cold butter and run it over the cheese and bread. Delicious!